“Better than chips” he said. “You can’t do better than chips!” I replied thinking about the age old advert where the child is offered “Chips or Daddy?” and rightfully chooses Chips. One beer later and I was on way way to Raizes, a Brazilian restaurant, with a big Brazil flag above the front door on Hackney road in Bethnal Green, East London.

Saying yes to the invite was my best decision of that day. A group of eight of us were easily accommodated on a Friday night without booking. The bi-lingual waiting staff were fantastic and warmed to the idea that instead of ordering bargain mazzive meals for £6 each that we would be partaking in the tapas. Great decision in hindsight.

I felt guilty eating the chicken hearts. Although the rest of the tapas was purely delightful. It included beef steak strips in vegtables, feijoada (a sort of black bean stew that was very yummy), a corn based soup of the name I forget, which I put over some brilliant smoked sausages before the fried cassava turned up and yes….it was better than chips. I could not believe it!

With a mix of locals, brazilian speakers and us. Superstar musician Marcos Valle playing a gig on the TV screens and the drinks….cachaça cocktails with caipirinhas all the way! I would go out of my way to come back here. It is great!